It started out with a kiss
by Sazfordayz
Summary: Though, perhaps not the kiss you'd expect... ONESHOT.


**AN** : I wrote this ages and ages ago when I was feeling kind of blue but I found it and tidied it up a little so… *thrusts at audience* HERE YOU GO, ENJOY.

(Btw, I don't own Naruto and also, yes that is Mr Brightside by the Killers, referenced in the title and in the oneshot itself)

It started out with a kiss.

'How did it end up like this?!' Hinata asked herself, as she dashed through the forest. She was struggling to keep herself together. Her breaths were coming shorter, though not from physical exertion. Her face scrunched up; vision through her byakugan became distorted by tears. With a little chakra to her hands, she climbed up the nearest tree and didn't stop climbing till she was well covered by the canopy. Only then did the sobs start to come hard and fast.

The image was crystal clear in her head. Yellow and pink. Boy and girl. Naruto and Sakura. They'd been on a date. They'd kissed. Right. In. Front. Of. Her.

They'd been dating for a month or two, ever since Naruto came back from his training with Jiraiya. Everyone commented that they were a cute couple. They fit so well together. A perfect couple.

And Hinata was torn up.

She had thought that after seeing Naruto again, things would be different. Maybe she'd be over him, maybe she wouldn't feel the same longing to be around him. If not then maybe he would have developed feelings for her, or at the very least missed her… But when she'd first seen him the day he returned, she'd felt that pang. The gut feeling that he was the one and always would be the one. The keeper to her heart. Nothing had changed. She was still just that little kid watching, waiting and just hoping from the sidelines. And even though it had never been his looks Hinata was interested in; the increase in height and muscle definition certainly hadn't helped her get over her feelings. Naruto had grown into his skin and she was more in love with him than ever.

And right now, all she could think about was how foolish she felt.

"I-it was only a kiss, just a kiss, I n-need to calm down." She whispered to herself but the sobs kept building in her throat, one on top of the other. Naruto was her friend and would never see her for more than that. Why was it so hard for her heart and brain to accept? He loved Sakura, and if it wasn't Sakura, it wouldn't be her. It would never be her. He'd never be kissing her like that- Like she was all that mattered in the world…

Hinata had been avoiding Naruto and Sakura for quite some time. Until this very evening in fact- ignorance was bliss, right? She hadn't gossiped with Sakura and Ino for several weeks; hadn't stopped by the training grounds when team seven were within a two hundred metre radius; hadn't stopped for lunch in Ichiraku's- Tonight had been the first time in 3 weeks she'd gone to grab Ramen with Shino and Kiba… And look where she was now. Sitting in a tree, crying. Alone. How pathetic.

Kiba and Shino would understand. Amidst the chaotic thoughts in her brain, she made a mental note to apologise to them later…

Eventually, the tears stopped coming but her face still felt raw and red. Emotionally expended, she sat in silence, drawing in slow, ragged breaths. She curled her knees up to her chest, looking as small as she felt. She didn't know how long she stayed in the tree, alone. Long enough for the sun to go down completely and fireflies to come out. At least the summer heat had kept her warm, but the night was cold. She didn't care.

Hinata would have stayed in her tree longer, had Neji not found her. She was so lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice him at first. And when she did, she didn't turn to face him.

"...Hello Neji…" He didn't say anything. Just gently planted himself beside her on the branch.

He finally broke the silence after several minutes.

"Hinata, where is your pride as a Kunoichi? He's not worth your tears." Neji said with an edge in his voice.

"I… I just…" She couldn't think of any excuses to make for herself or Naruto. That alone made her throat close up. Neji glanced over as Hinata curled up even smaller. He softened his voice slightly and put an arm around his cousin's shoulders.

"He doesn't deserve you. You are the heir to the Hyuuga family and are far superior, on so many levels. He is an idiot." Hinata sniffed. In his own way Neji was trying to make her feel better.

"...Thank you, Neji." She whispered.

The two sat in silence on the branch for a while, listening to the sounds of the forest. Hinata wasn't sure how long her cousin sat with her.

It must have been hours.

It wasn't until her eyes felt heavy and she was holding back yawns that Neji finally spoke.

"Would you like to stay here a little longer or head home?" he asked, respecting that she may still want to be alone.

"It's alright… I think I'll head home, now." He gave her a sharp nod and helped her to her feet. Simultaneously activating their byakugans, the two ninja jumped from the tree and took off back to Konoha.

' _Someday. Someday things might be different…'_ Was the last wistful thought that ran through Hinata's head as she left the forest behind her.


End file.
